Scott Allie claims that the decision was not made lightly and made sense for the continuation of the series.

"I was a little shocked and amazed when it first came up, but it has everything to do with where all these people are in their lives - where Giles is at, where Angel is at, where Buffy is at," Allie told Comic Book Resources. "The decision to kill a pivotal character is something that you can't just do for shock value or for the sake of housekeeping.

"It can't just be about that, and it wasn't about that," the editor added.

Allie promised big changes for the eventual Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season Nine now that magic has been removed from the world.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season Eight concludes with its fortieth issue on January 5, 2011.